Mayor: Christie aides tied Sandy funds to project

ANGELA DELLI SANTI
Associated PressPublished: January 18, 2014 3:25PM

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- The mayor of a New Jersey city that sustained severe flooding from Hurricane Sandy claims the Christie administration withheld millions of dollars in recovery grants because she refused to sign off on a politically connected development.

Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer tells The Associated Press that Gov. Chris Christie's lieutenant governor and a top community development official said recovery funds would flow to her city if the commercial development went forward. MSNBC first reported her comments Saturday.

Zimmer says Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno (gwah-DON-yo) pulled her aside at a May event and told her unless the project is approved "we are not going to be able to help you."

Christie is embroiled in another scandal involving traffic jams apparently manufactured to settle a political score.